Archive for the ‘Abstract and Just Plain Weird’ Category
The Sight of the Stars
Thursday, July 22nd, 2021
The Sight of the Stars, 8″x10″ mixed media on metallic paper
Metallic photo paper makes a fascinating substrate, you can’t ever lift color once it’s put down. Instead, all the texture here is physical, soft body acrylic that rises above the paper in bumps and ridges formed by the brush strokes. On top of that a scattering of iridescent watercolor stars adds to the shine that already comes through the semi-translucent paint.
“The sight of the stars makes me dream.”
-Vincent Van Gogh
Sometimes I start an Aglow painting with words in mind, and sometimes I create the image and find words that go with it. I think this was the latter, but time is meaningless here in 2021 so who knows.
The Sight of the Stars, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up of the textured paint and shiny paper catching the golden light overhead. Below, the painting is in a frame, waiting to be shipped off to its new home!
The Sight of the Stars, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Pretty Words, Series and Books
Tags: acrylic, aglow, blue, inkjet print, metallic paper, more cowbell, nfs, purple, soft body acrylic, sold, van gogh
Resonate
Tuesday, July 20th, 2021
Resonate, 6″x4″ watercolor and tea on paper
This piece sprang from a long-lost art challenge: I took the 2 teabags out of my giant mug of tea and put them on the page to create random shapes. I left them out for a few hours, then tossed the tea and let the paper dry thoroughly, by which I mean didn’t work on it again for a couple of months.
This abstract has a feeling that makes me think of the drip of tea back into the cup, of the shape made by a splash of milk, of the way sounds or ideas reverberate in your head.
What resonates with you?
Resonate, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the mix of bronzite and gold and the subtle ways they sparkle against the soft, tea-stained paper. Below, this small painting sits in a frame, ready to help you resonate.
Resonate, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Pretty Words
Tags: brown, for sale, gold, metallic, tea, watercolor
Concentric 10
Sunday, July 18th, 2021
Concentric 10, 6″x4″ watercolor on paper
This last half-year has had a lot of taking one thing and making it into another. A purple-washed background waiting to become art got the words “be kind” added in soft, subtle periwinkle. After another delay, bursts of shining dots finally blossomed into another addition to my Concentric series.
This tiny artwork has soothing shades of blue and purple and lovely lavender, hints of green and gold waiting to shine at the right angles.
This series is very meditative to paint, following my inner promptings to start a burst here, and then one there in that color, building up from the first dot to the last.
Concentric 10, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the three shades of color bursts, green-gold, dark purple, and ocean blue. Below, this small painting is framed and waiting to bring delight to some small nook or larger display of art.
Concentric 10, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Pretty Words, Series and Books
Tags: concentric, duochrome, iridescent, nfs, purple, sold, watercolor, word art
Growth 14
Wednesday, July 14th, 2021
Growth 14, 5″x7″ pen & ink and watercolor on paper
The sheen of rainbow colors in this Growth painting is extremely subtle and hard to see. The paper is phenomenally textured, thick and bumpy and imperfect in the best of ways. It was wonderful for making a wobbly, squashed, off-kilter circle to spin out into the tiny circles of growth, and to support the light brush of color in the middle.
The mixture of delicate pen strokes and thick, rough paper makes this piece unique, though it still follows the themes of outreach, growth, and expansion. In the middle there’s the quiet pride and confidence one needs to be able to put themselves out there, bumps and all.
Growth 14, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can really see the imperfections in the paper and the circle both, the wobbly little circles floating off into bumpy space. You can really see how faint the rainbow is in that photo as well. Below, the painting is in a frame, shining with pride.
Growth 14, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
Tags: duochrome, for sale, gay pride, growth, pen and ink, watercolor
Concentric 9
Monday, July 12th, 2021
Concentric 9, 5″x5″ watercolor on paper
A fitting start for a gallery full of abstract artwork and reclaimed images, here’s an old painting that gained a lot more cowbell.
This mostly-green painting had some sneaky color-changing shine to it already, so I doubled down on that palette and brought in some blue to go with the gold, green, and surprising pops of red. There’s just one big set of Concentric bursts that fade through the palette, and finally trail off and fade out into nothingness.
This is a painting I wish I could show you in person, since it looks different from every angle and has a lot more to offer than I can capture in photos. A very familiar complaint, sadly!
Concentric 9, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the sunlight reflecting off the green-gold and green-red paints, turning everything into new colors and showing off hidden details. Below, the painting is in a frame, ready to bring a bit of peace and beauty into your life.
Concentric 9, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, concentric, duochrome, green, iridescent, japanese watercolor, more cowbell, nfs, sold, watercolor
April 2021 Patreon Sketch Cards
Wednesday, July 7th, 2021
Having standardized the sketch size to these pre-cut ATC/ACEO cards makes my life so much easier — they come in vellum for drawing, watercolor paper, and some cool new stuff like Yupo synthetic substrate. It gives me a lot of room for play! Which I did with several of these that weren’t for anyone specific, heh.
From the top left:
- Do Good Recklessly, a recent tumblr meme
- Capybaras for Rebecca S
- A wee Concentric doodle to play with some of my new watercolors
- Bats and Mushrooms and Sun and idk man, sometimes you just gotta paint mushrooms I guess.
- Purple dragon for Andria, who wanted to have a golden hoard of their very own, which was pretty easy since they are very wee
- Amy B asked for a kitten and got a blobcat with a Christmas tree tail, which is a feature of kittens of a certain age that I find delightful. It has brought you a mouse toy like the mighty hunter it is, and is all fluffed up about it.
From the top left:
- Amber asked for “seasonal (holiday) allergies” and I may have chosen to tease her husband.
- A is for Amy wants to play with her yupo paper some more.
- Roxanne asked for Falcon & the Winter Solider and apparently this is what my brain wanted.
- Rey asked for “conditionally huggable” and of course I had to draw a hedgehog.
I love my Patreon supporters with all my heart — thanks, you guys! You’re the best.
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Completed Commissions, Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Illuminated Alphabet, People, Figures and Faces, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: bat, capybara, cat, concentric, copic marker, dragon, duochorome, hedgehog, iridescent, mcu, pen and ink, primatek, watercolor, word art
Yupo sketch cards
Tuesday, May 25th, 2021
I got a new substrate to try, Yupo, which is an interesting synthetic that comes in a transluscent thin sheet, a more normal sheet, and a fat cardstock, all very smooth and non-absorbent. Basically the opposite of watercolor paper! I got a package of sketch card sized pads, and did some non-request sketch experiments on them in various media.
5 sketch cards by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
Tags: aceo, cat, counting crows, crow, duochrome, salt, watercolor, yupo
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